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ISBN-13: 9780763617103
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Publication date: 04/28/2002
Edition description: Reprint
Pages: 32
Product dimensions: 8.50(w) x 10.25(h) x 0.17(d)
Age Range: 3 - 7 Years

Martin Waddell wanted Owl Babies to capture the "strong emotion of ‘I want my mommy!’” that is so familiar to children. Martin Waddell is the author of more than one hundred books for young readers. He lives in England.

Patrick Benson has won many awards for his illustrations, including the Mother Goose Award, the Christopher Award, and the Kurt Maschler Award. He has worked with such luminaries as Roald Dahl and Russell Hoban, and his picture book with Martin Waddell, Owl Babies, is a classic with more than 12 million copies in print. Patrick Benson lives in Scotland.

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Owl Babies

Average rating: 4.4 Average rating:

Publishers Weekly

Three worried owlets wait for their mother to return from her night flight. PW said, Benson's disarming cross-hatched pictures of fluffy, wide-eyed owl babies, and the use of light-colored text against a black background, turn this sweet story into a hauntingly lovely book. Ages 3-7. (Apr.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

New to board book format is Martin Waddell's Owl Babies, in which three worried owlets wait for their mother to return from her night flight. Patrick Benson's disarming cross-hatched pictures of fluffy, wide-eyed owl babies, and the use of light colored text against a black background, turn this sweet story into a hauntingly lovely little book. (Candlewick, $6.99 22p ages 18 mos.-2 yrs. ISBN 1-56402-965-4, Oct.)

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

The expressions on the faces of these baby owls are enough to tug at any heart, but the heartwarming story of Percy, Sarah and Bill, all of who are anxiously awaiting the return of mother owl, is a true delight. The easy cadence of the words, the gentle humor, and the poignancy of Bill's plaint "I want my Mommy" will ring true with kids and their mothers. Reissue of the 1992 award-winning book in a board book version.

Children's Literature - Susie Wilde

When children begin to eat, they are a little sloppy. That's because they throw themselves fully into the new experience. They may well have a similar approach to books. As we watched my daughter teethe on board books we would remark on her fine taste in books. A sure hit for older toddlers is the board book version of Owl Babies.

School Library Journal

PreS-- This simple story pales in comparison to the exceptionally well-crafted illustrations. Rendered in black ink and watercolor with an abundance of crosshatching used to show background, shadow, texture, and depth, each stunning woodcutlike panorama fills a double-page spread. Benson has chosen shades of turquoise, pale yellow, and light green for the large-type text in order to avoid detracting from the blue-and-green dominated paintings. Realistic as they appear, the three, fluffy, white baby owls and their mother are infused with distinct personalities. The owlets awaken one night to find their mother gone. Sarah, the largest, reasons that she is out hunting for food. Mid-sized Percy tends to agree, while tiny Bill will only repeat, ``I want my mommy!'' Mom, just out for a night flight, does return, of course, and her fledglings are delighted to see her. The repetition just doesn't work. The plot is too meager, the text too unexciting. Hutchins's Good Night Owl (Macmillan, 1991), Thaler's Owly (HarperCollins, 1982), and Yolen's Owl Moon (Philomel, 1987) are all better stories for preschoolers. Simple, well-written books about mother love and reassurance for this age group are abundant. --Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH

From the Publisher

This story will strike a familiar chord in every small child who has been afraid when left by [a] parent, and parents will perhaps gain a new understanding of how a small child might feel . . . A wonderful 'read to me' book for nap time, story time, or bedtime.
—Booklist

Benson's soft, wide-eyed birds—rendered in delicate pen strokes touched with gentle color that makes the dramatic, dark night seem appropriately awesome—are perfect stand-ins for wise little toddlers who also know Mom will turn up—but still can't help wondering.
—Kirkus Reviews

Enchanting…illustrations of the softly colored baby owls set against a black night will captivate preschool listeners.
—Modesto Bee

Featured in “50 of the Best Kids’ Books Published in the Last 25 Years”
—The Huffington Post

Children's Literature - Vicki Foote

The owl babies in this board book are as cute as can be, and the book has a sweet story to match. The three baby owls are Sarah, Percy, and Bill, and they live in a hole in the trunk of a tree with their owl mother. The three white baby owls, in stair-step sizes, are illustrated with their mother looking over them. But one night when they wake up, she is gone. They wonder where she is, and Bill says, “I want my mommy!” They think about it and decide that she went hunting to get them food, but Bill still says, “I want my mommy!” So they wait. They sit on different branches, hoping that she will be back soon. They notice how dark the woods are, and after thinking some more, they decide to all sit on one branch. They worry that she might be lost or captured by a fox. They all close their eyes and wish for her to come back. Owl Mother comes swooping back to the nest. The baby owls bounce and dance on their branch. Owl Mother wonders what all the fuss is about, and tells them that they all knew she would be back. Sarah and Percy say they knew it, and Bill says, “I love my mommy!” The delightful illustrations are done with black ink crosshatching and watercolor. This is a pleasant and reassuring book to read to young children, especially at bedtime. The small size is good for youngsters to hold and the board pages make it durable. Reviewer: Vicki Foote; Ages 2 to 4.

Children's Literature - Michele C. Hughes

Illustrations steal the show in this sweet story about owl babies who miss their mother. The woodcut-like drawings capture the soft fluffiness of the white owls, the vast, dark night in which they watch and wait, and the delicately veined leaves that surround their home. Somehow, the owls look simultaneously real and anthropomorphized, and this draws the reader into their world and their predicament. When three owl babies awaken to find their mother missing, they each have a different reaction. Sarah, the natural leader, reassures her siblings that their absent mother will return. Percy dutifully follows her lead, seconding her assertions. Little Bill, on the other hand, can only repeat, "I want my mommy!" in his owlish anguish. Simple language moves the story along to a comforting end, which makes this an ideal bedtime story. Consistent characterizations and the steadfastness of the mother owl are reassuring. The accompanying ten-minute DVD includes a lightly animated version of the book, read by a narrator, as well as a short film of the author talking about his work. A sticker page at the end adds another dimension to the book. Reviewer: Michele C. Hughes

Owl Babies

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